European presidents reaffirm their support for Ukraine

(MENAFN) European leaders, together with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, issued a joint statement on Tuesday endorsing US President Donald Trump’s call for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Ukraine, while stressing that Kyiv must approach any peace talks from a position of maximum strength.

The statement, signed by leaders from Germany, France, Italy, Poland, the UK, Finland, Denmark, Norway, and top European Union officials, reflects a coordinated European response to Trump’s renewed push for a peace agreement to end the three-year war.

"We are all united in our desire for a just and lasting peace, deserved by the people of Ukraine," the leaders said. "We strongly support President Trump's position that the fighting should stop immediately, and that the current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations."

However, the leaders emphasized a key condition: "We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force."

Signed by Zelenskyy, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and others, the statement accused Russia of deliberately obstructing diplomacy.

"Russia's stalling tactics have shown time and time again that Ukraine is the only party serious about peace," it said. "We can all see that Putin continues to choose violence and destruction."

The leaders outlined a dual approach: increasing economic pressure on Russia while ensuring Ukraine has the military resources needed to defend itself and negotiate effectively.

"Therefore, we are clear that Ukraine must be in the strongest possible position — before, during, and after any ceasefire," they said. "We must ramp up the pressure on Russia's economy and its defense industry, until Putin is ready to make peace."

In a major diplomatic initiative, the statement noted that measures are being developed to deploy the full value of Russia's frozen sovereign assets in support of Ukraine. Western nations have frozen hundreds of billions of dollars in Russian central bank reserves since the conflict began.

European leaders plan to continue coordinating support for Ukraine later this week at the EU Council in Brussels on Thursday and the Coalition of the Willing meeting in London on Friday, focusing on political, economic, and military assistance.

MENAFN21102025000045017640ID1110226730